He was a steady, stay-at-home defenseman who took a long and winding road from Sault Ste. Marie and back again to play four full seasons of hockey at the Division 1, National Collegiate Athletic Association level.

Aidan Wright played the game the right way. And for him, the game ended in graduation in the spring of 2018 after four seasons with the Lake Superior State University Lakers of the Western Collegiate Hockey Association.

An All-American scholar for his work in the classroom, Wright graduated from Lake Superior State a year ago with a degree in Fire Sciences.

Now 26 years old, Wright is working for Canada Post in Sault Ste. Marie as he awaits an opportunity to work in the fire sciences field.

I ran into Wright at a downtown local establishment the other day and the kid who I first wrote about when he was playing for the Soo North Stars of the Great North Midget Hockey League about 10 years ago has not changed much.

He is still the same friendly, personable, down-to-earth person. Just talking to him for a few minutes and it is evident that he carries the work ethic, character and good attitude that made him a good student and an overachieving hockey player.

Wright, who was born in Wawa and lived there until his family moved to Sault Ste. Marie during his minor hockey days, took a roundabout route to make it back home and play for Lake Superior State.

Never drafted into the Ontario Hockey League, Wright left home as a 17-year old to play for the Kingston Voyageurs of the Ontario Jr. Hockey League. He played three seasons for Kingston before heading west to finish his junior career with the Powell River Kings of the British Columbia Hockey League.

And it was from playing the one season out in B.C. that caught the attention of Lake Superior State, which brought Wright home to play for the Lakers as a walk-on freshman.

From freshman to sophomore to junior to senior, Wright stuck it for four years of hockey at Lake Superior State, playing 144 games in total for a Lakers team that posted a lowly record of 43-90-18 during that span.

At any rate, as Wright settles into the working world as a young adult with a university degree and a positive outlook on life, he remains a good example of a solid hockey player who went to great lengths to be successful as a classic overachiever.

PHOTOS: Aidan Wright, as a defenseman with the Lake Superior State University Lakers. (Photos by Ali Pearson.)